Haptics refers to a technology that allows a user to feel sensations such as a touch, a force, and the like by means of an input device, such as a keyboard, a mouse, a joystick, and a touchscreen. The term “haptics” is derived from a Greek adjective “haptesthai” meaning “touching.” Haptics is also referred to as “computer touch technology.”
In order to provide a haptic feedback to a user, a mechanical module such as an actuator can be used. For example, the actuator is operated by a source of energy, such as electric current, hydraulic fluid pressure, or pneumatic pressure, and converts that energy into a sort of motion. Recently, a number of actuators equipped on the body of a user to provide a tactile sensation has been developed. In actuators intended to provide a tactile sensation that have been developed up to present, a vibration motor, a hydraulic or pneumatic pump, or the like is used to provide the tactile sensation to the user's body in most cases (see Korean Patent Application Nos. 10-2001-0057470 and 10-2007-0132361).
In the field of actuators of the related art, studies have only focused on improving the feedback of tactile sensation, force, or kinesthesia that each actuator provides. However, technology that can be properly applied for users, in which haptic modules provide different types of haptic feedback, has not been proposed. Furthermore, an integrated interface system for educating a user while providing a variety of haptic feedback has not been proposed.
The information disclosed in the Background of the Invention section is only for the enhancement of understanding of the background of the invention, and should not be taken as an acknowledgment or as any form of suggestion that this information forms a prior art that would already be known to a person skilled in the art.